Thursday, November 27, 2008

This recipe has evolved from a dish that I was served at a restaurant in Castlemaine (Victoria), called The Globe, many years ago. The meal was memorable for the antics of the owner/waiters and the chicken livers that I had as an appetiser while thinking about what to have for the main part of the meal.

The chicken livers had been cooked perfectly and the sauce/seasoning accompanying them made them even more delicious. I asked the waiter to let the chef know that they were superb. As the waiter returned to the kitchen with the plate I could hear him call out to the chef - "Alright on the livers". Glad I'm not a chef relying on feedback.

You don't need a Thermomix to make the dukkah, nor do you need one to cook the livers, but since I have one I used it to do both.

The combination of chicken livers and dukkah is great and I have made a dip along the lines of chicken liver pate with finely milled dukkah.

There is a recipe for a terrine of chicken livers pressed with dukkah in Greg & Lucy Malouf's book "Arabesque"

It would be good to try a lightly cooked egg with the livers and dukkah too.

Place oil into TM bowl and heat for 5 minutes at Varoma temperature on speed 1.

Position butterfly on blades and carefully add chicken livers to the TM bowl. Cook for 4 minutes at Varoma temperature on reverse + speed soft. Check after 2 minutes - you may need to move some of the livers around to ensure even cooking.

Once the livers have changed colour on the outside they should be OK. It is best not to overcook them, they should be pink inside. Drain the livers using the basket and place onto absorbent paper on a plate that fits in the Varoma. Place plate in Varoma and set aside.

Quickly rinse TM bowl and put Madeira (or other) into TM bowl, position lid and Varoma and reduce the port for 5 minutes at Varoma temperature on speed 3.

Place livers on warmed plate, cover with the reduced sauce and then sprinkle with dukkah.

Each month Thermomix users are asked to send in recipes that they have created or adapted for the Thermomix.

From all the recipes sent in to TMX Australia, two are to be chosen each month and TMX users are asked to think about trying out the recipes and then voting.

This month, the recipes are from two of the bloggers from this site. Dani from The Kitchen Playground has a great Broad Bean and Feta Bruschetta (that's pronounced brew-sket-a [for Karen] - not brewshetter) and that is pitted against kedgeree.

All recipes will be considered for inclusion in new Thermomix Cookbooks - and the entrants will receive a copy of the new book if their recipe makes it into the books.

It is a great concept from a number of perspectives. Firstly, it encourages TMX users to record their recipes for others. It helps spread the word and increase usage of the Thermomix. The recipes presented can be "road-tested" by more than one person, under varying vonditions, so any errors or omissions or ambiguities can be sored out.

There are loads of ideas that are currently being utilized by Thermomix users that they should be sharing, but have felt that they have not previously had any avenue (despite the A Little Bit of Thermomix Magic blog that Karen started!!).

Well, thanks to Tenina you now can make use of all that knowledge to help your fellow users.

This is a Thermomix adaptation of a recipe by Anthony Lui, part-owner and chef at Melbourne's famous Flower Drum restaurant.

The recipe appears in a book that was designed to provide better options for childrens' lunches. It was written by a Melbourne woman and also includes recipes by Philippe Mouchel of the brasserie by Philippe Mouchel. There are many simple recipes that are appealing also to adults, so you will get some of these served up in the coming months.

The recipe has some Chinese rice wine and sesame oil added. You may omit these and the results will still be good.

Place chicken, flour, salt and water into TMX bowl. Hit Turbo 3 times to chop the chicken and mix the meat with marinade. You may need to chop it more, but don’t make mince out of it. Look after each pulse on the Turbo. Remove and keep aside.

Place the chicken stock in TMX bowl and heat for 5 minutes at 100°C on speed 1. Add marinated chicken and cook for 3 minutes at 90°C on reverse + speed 1.

Add creamed corn, sesame oil and salt and cook for 5 minutes at 90°C on reverse +speed 1. Once the blade is turning then pour in the thickening through the opening in the lid and continue cooking until mixture thickens.

Once thickened, slowly pour in the beaten egg through the lid and stir until there are soft strands through the soup. It only takes a few seconds. Stop the TMX and serve.